Central's Rachel Guffy proves that's anything possible

The senior softball player didn't miss a game that a long battle with scoliosis and a torn ACL last summer.

Rachel Guffy of Central Catholic overcame major back surgery and a torn… (Emily Robson, THE MORNING…)

June 05, 2013|By Keith Groller, Of The Morning Call

Anything's possible.

That's the message Rachel Guffy has for anyone who may be going through a tough time in their lives.

Guffy, a senior at Central Catholic, encountered her share of tough times over the past eight years.

But there she was on Wednesday night, in her normal spot at Patriots Park during the 30th annual Carole Weil Memorial Scholarship High School All-Star Classic, an event that has become an annual celebration for all that is good in local softball.

On a night filled with good kids, good players, and good stories, perhaps none was as compelling as Guffy's.

She was presented with the Kyle Miller Courage Award for her perseverance and determination in battling through eight years of health issues, yet never missing a practice or a game.

At the age of 10, Guffy's very active life was put on hold when a routine checkup produced a diagnosis of scoliosis, the curvature of the spine.

For years, she had to wear a cumbersome brace — sometimes up to 20 hours per day. The only time she didn't wear the brace was when she played sports.

Despite many trips to Shriner's Hospital in Philadelphia and long hours in the brace, her condition wasn't improving.

So, major surgery was required, which included seven titanium staples inserted into her spine. It also required a six-day, intensive-care hospital stay and several months of inactivity.

"After the back surgery, I didn't think I'd be able to come back and play again the way I could before," she said.

But she came all the way back and was already looking forward to a big senior year last summer when in her first travel-team tournament, she suffered a torn ACL and meniscus in her left knee.

"My dad encouraged me," she said. "He said that Adrian Peterson came back and had a great season after suffering a torn ACL in football. He asked me if I could come back and hit .400. I said 'we'll see' and I went out and did it."

Guffy was an honorable mention choice at second base on the Lehigh Valley Conference all-star team.

Guffy's Vikettes struggled this spring, finishing 5-15 and 3-11 in the LVC.

After what she went through, however, Guffy still enjoyed every minute of it.

"Personally, I am just thankful that I was able to play after all I've been through," she said. "It's a miracle. After the ACL tear, I wasn't sure. It happened last June 10, on my 17th birthday, and it kept me out all summer. I had eight months of rehab. I thought it would put a dent on how I'd be able to play this year."

Her parents, David and Melinda Guffy, said that Rachel has always stayed level-headed no matter how many difficult things came her way.

"She doesn't get too high or too low," her father said. "She rarely complained about her health. It was probably more difficult on us, as parents, than on her to see her have to deal with all of the stuff.

"The brace was so hard on her. She wanted to not have to wear it and that's why she had the surgery, which was also hard on her. She still might need more spinal fusion surgery in the future. But she'll deal with it just like everything else."

While all of the health issues slowed her down, Guffy never got out of step in the classroom either.

She is a member of the National Honor Society and a peer group leader at Mercy Special Learning Center. She also volunteers her time at the Good Shepherd Home, assisting those who are mentally and physically challenged.

Although she has never been to UCLA, she applied and was excepted at the Los Angeles school and that's where she will go in the fall.

"I can't wait," she said. "It's a great academic school and I hear it's beautiful out there."

Asked if they thought she might have difficulty adjusting to a very different lifestyle 3,000 miles and three time zones away, the Guffys shook their heads.

"We're going to spend a week of vacation out there in August to help her get acclimated," Melinda Guffy said. "We told her to try out as a walk-on and just see what the UCLA softball program is like."

"That's where she wanted to go and I have no doubt that she'll make it work," David Guffy said. "After what she's been through, she can handle anything."

Guffy was not the only winner on Wednesday night..

Allen's Tiffany White, Northwestern's Felecia Heckman and East Stroudsburg South's Allison Parkes were named the winners of $1,500 scholarships. Over the past three decades, 77 girls have received Weil scholarships totaling more than $80,000.

In addition, the Lehigh Valley PIAA Umpires Association presented scholarships to Notre Dame's Lexi McGivern and Northampton's Marly Laubach and also officially honored Northampton as its sportsmanship winner for the 2013 season.

The East Penn Umpires Association presented scholarships to White and Northampton's Erin Tiwold.

The scholarship that went to White was the Dennis Schantzenbach Memorial Scholar-Athlete Award, and was given in honor of Schantzenbach, a beloved local official who died last year.